Orlando Golf Scene

Some renovations simply alter or spruce up a golf course. Other ones, however, can drastically change the personality, playability and challenge of a single layout much for the better. Five years removed from a renovation by Steve Smyers, Grande Pines Golf Club is most certainly far more the latter than the former.

Located in the shadow of Sea World in the heart of Orlando just off International Drive, Grande Pines was already one of the better regarded layouts in Central Florida before the renovation began. Following Smyers’ redesign, this 18-hole Marriott Golf facility is in the discussion as one of the finest courses in the area; a significant statement given the world-class golf that is found throughout the Orlando region. The reigning Marriott Golf property of the year, Grande Pines was originally designed by Joe Lee and opened as the International Golf Club in 1986. In 2003 the club shut down for the considerable redesign, and opened a year later with a fresh new look, a new name and a new designer of record in Smyers, whose work at the course more than justifies that honor.

World-Class Golf Right at Home!

You don’t have to travel far to play one of the best golf courses in the world, because there’s one right in your backyard! Sugarloaf Mountain Golf & Town Club, located just a short drive from downtown Orlando in Minneola, has been ranked one of the “Top 10 New Courses in the World” by Travel & Leisure Golf Magazine and one of the “Top 10 Best New Golf Courses in the Nation” by Golfweek.

Exceptional location, new enhancements and online best rate guarantee highlight this Orlando favorite.

For golfers traveling to Orlando, the myriad of golf options to consider makes course and tee time selection a daunting if not overwhelming task. Questions traveling golfers often ask themselves are: What course is close to the Disney area resorts? Are there any courses close to the airport? Where is the best value? Can my child play with me for less? All of these questions can be answered with one simple course name: Hunter’s Creek Golf Club.

Whether you plan on playing one round or multiple days, Hunters Creek Golf Club needs to be included in your Orlando Golf Vacation itinerary There are many reasons this ‘must play’ is popular not only with visiting golfers, but residents alike. First of all, Hunters Creek Golf Club boasts 18 holes of fun-filled golf designed by Lloyd Clifton. Featuring five sets of tees ranging from 5,225 yards to a daunting 7,268 yards, Hunters Creek is highlighted by strategically-placed bunkering, expansive TifEagle greens and meandering fairways that carve through majestic, towering pines and around 13 shimmering lakes.

When Herbert Warren Wind coined the phrase “Amen Corner” in reference to holes 11, 12 and 13 at Augusta National Golf Club in 1958, he supplied what eventually would become the world’s most prestigious golf tournament with a distinctly unique three-hole enclave as synonymous with The Masters as the great Bobby Jones; a standalone experience within the overall body of work.

Closer to home, PGA National Golf Club has the “Bear Trap” and TPC Sawgrass has the infamous island green. Albeit without the national acclaim or PGA Tour status to provide it, Candler Hills Golf Club has a collection of golf holes so unique and challenging they deserve their own distinction 18 times over.

Overall, the Gordon Lewis-designed Candler Hills, located smack dab in the middle of Florida’s horse country in Ocala, is a stern test for the most accomplished golfers as evidenced by its status as host to some of the state’s top events such as the North Florida Senior Open, the Ocala Open and a Florida State Women’s Golf Association Tournament.

As the schedule stands now, the PGA Tour makes two trips annually to the Orlando metropolitan area; a fall series event, the Children's Miracle Network Classic, in Lake Buena Vista, and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which is the crown jewel of March's Florida Swing. If you were to attempt a marathon golf session, sampling a new course each day, starting at the conclusion of the Classic in November, you would fall well short of checking every name off of your list by the time the boys from the PGA Tour made it back to Bay Hill in the spring.

With more than 150 championship golf courses, Orlando is the heart of a state that eats, sleeps and breathes golf, but the grand old game is just the tip of the iceberg in this vibrant and varied city.

Despite an ideal location mere minutes from downtown Orlando and a short half-hour’s drive from the area’s theme parks, Zellwood Station Golf Club has enjoyed its reputation as one of the best kept golf secrets in Central Florida.

That distinction, however, is likely to change in the coming months as Zellwood undergoes some exciting changes and upgrades to its classic layout and course amenities that are sure to increase its notoriety and attention and finally ensure it a place among the most requested and respected facilities in Orlando. Tucked away in the rolling hills northeast of Apopka just off Highway 441, Zellwood Station is anything but your typical Florida golf course. Hilly terrain, significant elevation changes and treelined fairways provide a unique feel and significant challenges to the semi-private golf club.

LPGA Intcrnational sets a standard of excellence for our golf club — offering challenging courses, quality service and immaculate conditions. The LPGA International: two golf courses distinctly different in design, one memorable experience.

Since 1994, the signature Rees Jones-designed Champions Course has been the home course of the LPGA Tour, Conveniently located near 1-95 in Daytona Beach, Florida, it gained its notoriety as the host of numerous LPGA Tour Championships and is now the host of the final stage of the LPGA Tour Qualifying School.

CELEBRATION - Like fine wine, a golf course sometimes needs time to mature into the great final product that was envisioned when the first seed was planted.

Small tweaks are made in the formative years. Trees mature. Mowing habits change. And finally, after a few years of trial and error, and with the helping hand of Mother Nature, a golf course settles into its final stage.

One of the greatest things about golf is its diversity in experience. Because the game is driven by the courses we play, one day’s round can be as different, yet equally as enjoyable, as the round before and the next one to come.

A links-style course offers one set of challenges and visuals, while a traditional American-style course provides an entirely different set. It is, to be sure, a unique aspect to the game -- every time you think you’ve experienced it all, another course comes along and changes your entire perception and, often times, appreciation for the game.

Such is the case with Kissimmee Bay Country Club and Remington Golf Club, a pair of Orlando sister courses that share their designer, zip code and popularity in common, but have unique personalities and challenges all to their own. Though located a mere mile apart from one another, Remington and Kissimmee Bay are two vastly different golf courses.

Once best known as the home of the world’s most famous mouse, the Orlando area has emerged the past couple of years as the premier golf destination in the United States. Countless world-class courses, resorts and memorable golf events have taken the Central Florida golf industry out from the shadow of theme parks and tourist traps and onto every avid golfer’s must-do list.

Perhaps no other facility better exemplifies this golf growth than Champions Gate, which in a little less than 10 years has grown from a quiet 36-hole golf facility located only a couple miles from the gates to Disney into a serious golf resort that is home to 36 holes of championship golf, a world-renowned golf school and a luxurious hotel.

During the past several years, change has certainly come to ChampionsGate as it has Orlando in general. The home to two Greg Norman crafted golf courses, ChampionsGate is now just as renowned as the host of the David Leadbetter Golf Academy and the spectacular Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate. The resort is now a sanctuary of sorts, far enough from the area’s hot tourists stops to provide a quiet golf retreat, and close enough to all that action that golf and nightlife can perfectly co-exist.